NoOption5L@aol.com

This is a condensed version of an article in this month's C&D:

Note: The following happened the first Saturday in April at Tulsa
Raceway Park in Oklahoma around 10 PM.

A 2-time, division 4 title winner, and 3-time national event winner
with 27 years of drag racing experience, pulls up to the starting line
in her Top Alcohol dragster. She then takes off, gets about half track
and her dragster does what is called a blowover wheel stand. The
dragster, while continuing to roar down the track standing on its tail,
turns 180 degrees and comes down with tremendous force (They speculate
the impact of the force knocks the driver unconscious) and the dragster
is now facing the starting line. Although the dragster is pointing
toward the starting line, and the wheels are turning in that direction,
the momentum of the dragster continues to send the car backward toward
the finish line, which it passes at 115 mph with a time of 6.633
seconds. The rearward travel finally ends about 1,500 feet past the
finish line; however, with the driver unconscious and the dragster's
throttle still at full tilt the dragster then heads back toward the
starting line. Despite careening off the spectator and tower lanes the
dragster gains speed and finally recrosses the start line at about 250
mph. Adding to the tragic numbing shock, the driver's husband
witnesses the whole spectacle. Their 36-year old son, in the back of
the chase vehicle which is parked 125 feet behind the starting line,
also witnesses the whole event *UNTIL* his mom's dragster plows into
the chase vehicle sending both vehicles 225 feet through a rear burnout
wall and into an open field and stream instantly killing him and his
mother.

Bizarre, huh? I don't think even Rod Sterling could have thought this
one up.

Patrick
'93 Cobra

JC

NoOption5L@aol.com wrote:

> This is a condensed version of an article in this month's C&D:
>
> Note: The following happened the first Saturday in April at Tulsa
> Raceway Park in Oklahoma around 10 PM.

<snipped for brevity of post>

On Saturday, April 2, 2005 Shelly Howard, and her son Brian Howard,
were killed in a racing accident at Tulsa Raceway Park. The accident
occurred while making a test run of Shelly's new dragster during the
bracket racing program. At 10:12 p.m., Shelly made her third pass of
the evening in the tower lane. The car left the starting line in what
appeared to be a problem-free run. After passing the 1/8 mile mark at
201 miles per hour, the dragster began what is referred to as a
blow-over. A blow-over occurs when too much air goes under the front
wing of the dragster causing the front end to lift. At this point,
Shelly lifted off the accelerator. As the dragster became vertical, it
rotated 180 degrees on its axis and then touched down on all four
wheels and against the wall with the car now facing the starting line.
The impact of the dragster to the pavement could have been severe
enough to cause Shelly Howard to lose consciousness. This theory is
supported by the fact that she did not hit the kill switch, deploy the
chutes or turn the fuel supply off to the motor. At that point, either
the throttle stuck wide open, or, Shelly's foot jammed the throttle
down. Extensive damage to the dragster and the onboard "black box"
made it impossible to determine which occurred. The car continued down
the track backwards making almost continuous contact with the tower
lane wall, while the tires were spinning in the opposite direction.
The dragster passed the ¼ mile stripe in 6.633 seconds at 115 miles an
hour. The car continued down the track backwards until approximately
1,500 feet from the starting line when it ceased its rearward momentum
and began to travel forward towards the starting line, under full
acceleration. After traveling several hundred feet uptrack towards the
starting line, the car swerved into the spectator lane and then back
into the tower lane at the 660' foot line. The car made hard contact
with the wall in the tower lane at the 320' foot mark and light
contact with the tower lane wall at the starting line while traveling
an estimated 250 miles per hour. At 125' past the starting line, the
dragster struck the crew's chase car. The chase car's occupant,
Brian Howard, was sitting in the rear seat, and along with Shelly, was
killed instantly. The force of the collision hurled both the dragster
and the chase car 225' through a rear burn-out wall and into an open
field and stream. An investigation by the Tulsa Police Department
ruled their deaths an accident. No other injuries were reported.

Tulsa Raceway Park and its employees extend their deepest sympathies to
Dr. Paul Howard, daughters Tracy and Jennifer and their extended
family. Our thoughts and prayers are with you

NoOption5L@aol.com

Thanks JC for adding all the details!

Patrick
'93 Cobra


JC wrote:
> NoOption5L@aol.com wrote:
>
> > This is a condensed version of an article in this month's C&D:
> >
> > Note: The following happened the first Saturday in April at Tulsa
> > Raceway Park in Oklahoma around 10 PM.
>
> <snipped for brevity of post>
>
> On Saturday, April 2, 2005 Shelly Howard, and her son Brian Howard,
> were killed in a racing accident at Tulsa Raceway Park. The accident
> occurred while making a test run of Shelly's new dragster during the
> bracket racing program. At 10:12 p.m., Shelly made her third pass of
> the evening in the tower lane. The car left the starting line in what
> appeared to be a problem-free run. After passing the 1/8 mile mark at
> 201 miles per hour, the dragster began what is referred to as a
> blow-over. A blow-over occurs when too much air goes under the front
> wing of the dragster causing the front end to lift. At this point,
> Shelly lifted off the accelerator. As the dragster became vertical, it
> rotated 180 degrees on its axis and then touched down on all four
> wheels and against the wall with the car now facing the starting line.
> The impact of the dragster to the pavement could have been severe
> enough to cause Shelly Howard to lose consciousness. This theory is
> supported by the fact that she did not hit the kill switch, deploy the
> chutes or turn the fuel supply off to the motor. At that point, either
> the throttle stuck wide open, or, Shelly's foot jammed the throttle
> down. Extensive damage to the dragster and the onboard "black box"
> made it impossible to determine which occurred. The car continued down
> the track backwards making almost continuous contact with the tower
> lane wall, while the tires were spinning in the opposite direction.
> The dragster passed the ¼ mile stripe in 6.633 seconds at 115 miles an
> hour. The car continued down the track backwards until approximately
> 1,500 feet from the starting line when it ceased its rearward momentum
> and began to travel forward towards the starting line, under full
> acceleration. After traveling several hundred feet uptrack towards the
> starting line, the car swerved into the spectator lane and then back
> into the tower lane at the 660' foot line. The car made hard contact
> with the wall in the tower lane at the 320' foot mark and light
> contact with the tower lane wall at the starting line while traveling
> an estimated 250 miles per hour. At 125' past the starting line, the
> dragster struck the crew's chase car. The chase car's occupant,
> Brian Howard, was sitting in the rear seat, and along with Shelly, was
> killed instantly. The force of the collision hurled both the dragster
> and the chase car 225' through a rear burn-out wall and into an open
> field and stream. An investigation by the Tulsa Police Department
> ruled their deaths an accident. No other injuries were reported.
>
> Tulsa Raceway Park and its employees extend their deepest sympathies to
> Dr. Paul Howard, daughters Tracy and Jennifer and their extended
> family. Our thoughts and prayers are with you

JC

NoOption5L@aol.com wrote:
> Thanks JC for adding all the details!
>
> Patrick
> '93 Cobra

<snipped again :)>

You are welcome.

Below is a direct link to a post from someone who was an eyewitness to
the accident.


http://www.dragracingunderground.com...ges/19458.html

JC

Mark C.

Ouch! That's a terribly violent way to go but like I always say "Death is
worse for the living than it is for the dead."

--
Mark
--
"I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates who once said, "I drank
what?". " Val Kilmer in Real Genius.





"JC" <JessieColt@hotpop.com> wrote in message
news:VKqre.95169$CR5.64452@bignews1.bellsouth.net...
> NoOption5L@aol.com wrote:
>> Thanks JC for adding all the details!
>>
>> Patrick
>> '93 Cobra
>
> <snipped again :)>
>
> You are welcome.
>
> Below is a direct link to a post from someone who was an eyewitness to the
> accident.
>
>
> http://www.dragracingunderground.com...ges/19458.html
>
> JC

RichA

On 13 Jun 2005 18:12:08 -0700, NoOption5L@aol.com wrote:

>This is a condensed version of an article in this month's C&D:
>
>Note: The following happened the first Saturday in April at Tulsa
>Raceway Park in Oklahoma around 10 PM.
>
>A 2-time, division 4 title winner, and 3-time national event winner
>with 27 years of drag racing experience, pulls up to the starting line
>in her Top Alcohol dragster. She then takes off, gets about half track
>and her dragster does what is called a blowover wheel stand. The
>dragster, while continuing to roar down the track standing on its tail,
>turns 180 degrees and comes down with tremendous force (They speculate
>the impact of the force knocks the driver unconscious) and the dragster
>is now facing the starting line. Although the dragster is pointing
>toward the starting line, and the wheels are turning in that direction,
>the momentum of the dragster continues to send the car backward toward
>the finish line, which it passes at 115 mph with a time of 6.633
>seconds. The rearward travel finally ends about 1,500 feet past the
>finish line; however, with the driver unconscious and the dragster's
>throttle still at full tilt the dragster then heads back toward the
>starting line. Despite careening off the spectator and tower lanes the
>dragster gains speed and finally recrosses the start line at about 250
>mph. Adding to the tragic numbing shock, the driver's husband
>witnesses the whole spectacle. Their 36-year old son, in the back of
>the chase vehicle which is parked 125 feet behind the starting line,
>also witnesses the whole event *UNTIL* his mom's dragster plows into
>the chase vehicle sending both vehicles 225 feet through a rear burnout
>wall and into an open field and stream instantly killing him and his
>mother.
>
>Bizarre, huh? I don't think even Rod Sterling could have thought this
>one up.
>
>Patrick
>'93 Cobra

Amazing what 5000 out of control horsepower can do. I don't want to
wallow in what killed two people, but I'd like to see the video of
this.
-Rich

2.3Sleeper

I knew her and her family. She had come down to the strip in Noble many
times. One of the most personable groups of people you could ever meet. When
we found out about this, it was like 2 days after it happened. I was
devastated, absolutely blown away. I am glad I did not see the accident...I
don't know if I would have ever gotten over seeing something like that and
actually knowing the persons involved.


Don Manning



<NoOption5L@aol.com> wrote in message
news:1118711528.077219.255000@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com...
> This is a condensed version of an article in this month's C&D:
>
> Note: The following happened the first Saturday in April at Tulsa
> Raceway Park in Oklahoma around 10 PM.
>
> A 2-time, division 4 title winner, and 3-time national event winner
> with 27 years of drag racing experience, pulls up to the starting line
> in her Top Alcohol dragster. She then takes off, gets about half track
> and her dragster does what is called a blowover wheel stand. The
> dragster, while continuing to roar down the track standing on its tail,
> turns 180 degrees and comes down with tremendous force (They speculate
> the impact of the force knocks the driver unconscious) and the dragster
> is now facing the starting line. Although the dragster is pointing
> toward the starting line, and the wheels are turning in that direction,
> the momentum of the dragster continues to send the car backward toward
> the finish line, which it passes at 115 mph with a time of 6.633
> seconds. The rearward travel finally ends about 1,500 feet past the
> finish line; however, with the driver unconscious and the dragster's
> throttle still at full tilt the dragster then heads back toward the
> starting line. Despite careening off the spectator and tower lanes the
> dragster gains speed and finally recrosses the start line at about 250
> mph. Adding to the tragic numbing shock, the driver's husband
> witnesses the whole spectacle. Their 36-year old son, in the back of
> the chase vehicle which is parked 125 feet behind the starting line,
> also witnesses the whole event *UNTIL* his mom's dragster plows into
> the chase vehicle sending both vehicles 225 feet through a rear burnout
> wall and into an open field and stream instantly killing him and his
> mother.
>
> Bizarre, huh? I don't think even Rod Sterling could have thought this
> one up.
>
> Patrick
> '93 Cobra
>

Mark C.

And to think, anything you usually don't want to go wrong during a normal
race didn't happen in this circumstance which could have saved them, like
the engine blowing or tires failing. I guess because it was a fresh car.

--
Mark
--
"I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates who once said, "I drank
what?". " Val Kilmer in Real Genius.





"2.3Sleeper" <spamdmanning@mwcmustangs.com> wrote in message
news:CWAre.1793$ks4.595@newssvr12.news.prodigy.com...
>I knew her and her family. She had come down to the strip in Noble many
> times. One of the most personable groups of people you could ever meet.
> When
> we found out about this, it was like 2 days after it happened. I was
> devastated, absolutely blown away. I am glad I did not see the
> accident...I
> don't know if I would have ever gotten over seeing something like that and
> actually knowing the persons involved.
>
>
> Don Manning
>
>
>
> <NoOption5L@aol.com> wrote in message
> news:1118711528.077219.255000@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com...
>> This is a condensed version of an article in this month's C&D:
>>
>> Note: The following happened the first Saturday in April at Tulsa
>> Raceway Park in Oklahoma around 10 PM.
>>
>> A 2-time, division 4 title winner, and 3-time national event winner
>> with 27 years of drag racing experience, pulls up to the starting line
>> in her Top Alcohol dragster. She then takes off, gets about half track
>> and her dragster does what is called a blowover wheel stand. The
>> dragster, while continuing to roar down the track standing on its tail,
>> turns 180 degrees and comes down with tremendous force (They speculate
>> the impact of the force knocks the driver unconscious) and the dragster
>> is now facing the starting line. Although the dragster is pointing
>> toward the starting line, and the wheels are turning in that direction,
>> the momentum of the dragster continues to send the car backward toward
>> the finish line, which it passes at 115 mph with a time of 6.633
>> seconds. The rearward travel finally ends about 1,500 feet past the
>> finish line; however, with the driver unconscious and the dragster's
>> throttle still at full tilt the dragster then heads back toward the
>> starting line. Despite careening off the spectator and tower lanes the
>> dragster gains speed and finally recrosses the start line at about 250
>> mph. Adding to the tragic numbing shock, the driver's husband
>> witnesses the whole spectacle. Their 36-year old son, in the back of
>> the chase vehicle which is parked 125 feet behind the starting line,
>> also witnesses the whole event *UNTIL* his mom's dragster plows into
>> the chase vehicle sending both vehicles 225 feet through a rear burnout
>> wall and into an open field and stream instantly killing him and his
>> mother.
>>
>> Bizarre, huh? I don't think even Rod Sterling could have thought this
>> one up.
>>
>> Patrick
>> '93 Cobra
>>
>
>